


Put On Your War Paint

by DearestAstronaut (Destiel1994)



Category: Free!
Genre: Ai is on YouTube and Sei and Momo make vines together, F/M, Kou is a BAMF, M/M, Make-Up Artist Ai, Rin is kind of a jerk, Style Five AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-12
Updated: 2016-09-25
Packaged: 2018-04-04 01:26:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4121242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Destiel1994/pseuds/DearestAstronaut
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All Matsuoka Kou has ever wanted since she started managing the boy group Style Five was for the group’s make up artist to stay for longer than a few weeks. Unlucky for her, with a member like Rin who likes to lead on the artists and then kick them to the curb, she would have better chances hunting down the lost city of Atlantis than convincing a rejected artist not to quit. At her wit’s end, Kou, with a little help from Nagisa (ok, a lot of help from Nagisa), decided that hiring a male make up artist would be the best bet. Unfortunately, Kou did not plan on her brother following a familiar pattern when the new artist shows up. Nitori Aiichirou, however, refuses to allow Rin to treat him like he treated all of the others.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I Don't Blame You for Being You (But You Can't Blame Me for Hating It)

**Author's Note:**

> First Free! fanfic I've written! Rating might go up as the story progresses but I'm not entirely sure. I hope everyone enjoys this! :3

Matsuoka Kou sighed as she listened to the muffled arguing that was occurring behind the thin wall that her makeshift desk was pushed up against. Silently, she removed a small pad of paper and a bright red pen from her purse. She opened the notebook and flipped past a few pages until she reached one titled “Make-up Artist.” Knowing where the argument was heading without having to hear the conclusion of it, Kou clicked the pen and drew a thick line through the name at the very bottom of the list. Above the now voided name was around ten other names that all shared the same fate, a painfully earned decoration of a bright red line of rejection. She laid her head down on the countertop and prayed that her brother didn’t fuck up as badly this time as he did with Misaki, the make-up artist before the one who’s currently quitting. Kou shuttered as she remembered the lawsuit that proceed after Misaki’s departure.

“Another one bites the dust, yeah?” 

Unaware that another person had entered the room, Kou’s head shot up rapidly. She winced and let out a noise of pain when the sharp, sudden movement caused the crown of her head to collide with a desk lamp. It took a few blinks before she was able to finally focus her eyes on the newcomer. She let out the breath she didn’t realize she was holding when she noticed that it was Hazuki Nagisa, one the members in Style Five, the boy band that she managed.

“Nagisa!” Kou staged whispered at the blond. “You scared me half to death! And keep your voice down! I wanna hear how this is going to pan out!”

“But you already know.” Nagisa replied in a voice that was no quieter than when he first spoke. He pointed down to her list as if to remind her that she had already struck out the girl’s name. Mentally, Kou groaned at the boy’s gestures. “It’s always the same thing. Our make-up artist becomes utterly obsessed with Rin. Then he leads her on and as soon as he get what he wants, which is sex.” This time around, Kou released an audible groan. She may know what Rin is doing with all of the band’s artists, but there is no way in hell that she wants to actively sit down and have a conversation about her idiot brother’s sex life. “Anyways, once Rin sleeps with them, he starts ignoring them. They get upset and quit and then we are back to square one.” Nagisa let out a sigh as a sad look overcame his cherub face. “Pity, I actually liked Hana. She was a sweetheart and actually knew what she was doing.”

“I know! I know! I just don’t know what to do! I’ve tried talking to him about it. It just seems like that ever since the group has gotten bigger, the fame has inflated his empty head to the size of a watermelon!” Frustrated, Kou grasped a piece of her hair and began twisting it aggressively.

“Yeah, talking probably won’t work with Rin-Rin.” 

“Oh and just what the hell do you think will work, Nagisa? Please enlighten me with your ideas! If Rin keeps doing this shit, the label is just going to up and drop Style Five! Do you want that, Nagisa? Do you?” Without consciously realizing it, Kou had stood up, mid-rant, and started staring Nagisa down. The blond just let out a laugh, not phased in the slightest by the redhead’s murderous glare. He had been on the receiving end of that glare a multitude of times. However after the third or fourth time, he had become immune to the girl’s predictable form of intimidation. His laughter calmed down as he began to contemplate solutions for their slight Rin problem. After a few seconds of brainstorming, Nagisa suddenly reached out and placed his hand on Kou’s shoulder, shaking her out of her own, much more violent, train of thought.

“I think I have a idea, Gou-chan.”

“Kou, Nagisa, Kou...So do I.”

“What’s your idea, Gou-chan?”

“We kill him and find a doppelganger to take his place. And if we can’t hunt one down, I'll just chop all my hair off and pretend to be him.”

“Um...As fun as murder sounds, I don't think it's the best answer to our problem. Although, I do believe you would make an awesome Rin-Rin double, Gou-chan.”

“For the final time, Nagisa. Call me Kou, damn it! Now what’s your idea?”

“Is Rin-Rin attracted to only girls?”

The question caught Kou off guard. Was now, of all times, really the best place to discuss her older brother’s sexuality? Although she was beyond confused, Kou was also intrigued by the boy’s sudden question.

“I’m pretty sure he is. But what exactly does that do with our make-up artist drama?” Kou tilted her head in confusion and stared at Nagisa, waiting for him to explain himself better. Nagisa let out a small giggle, tickled pink that Kou was unable to connect the dots.

“Rin-Rin likes to lead our artists along and then toss them away like old garbage, right?” Kou slowly nodded in agreement. “And all of our previous artists were women, correct?” Again, Kou nodded, still unsure. “So if Rin-Rin only dates women and enjoys playing around with our artists, who have all happened to be women, why don’t we just hire a male make-up artist? I mean, you said Rin-Rin only dates women, I’m with Rei-chan and Mako-chan and Haru-chan have been together since they day they were born so there is absolutely no reason for a male make-up artist to be anything more than that, our artist. Right, Gou-chan?” At the end of his monologue, Nagisa smiled sweetly at Kou, whose eyes were beginning to enlighten with realization. 

Stunned, Kou stared at the blond before she came to her senses and practically tackled the boy to the ground. She squeezed him in a tight hug and sloppily kissed his cheek. In the background she could hear Hana bellow out “I quit!” and, a few seconds later, the door slam shut.  
“Hazuki Nagisa, you are a genius!”


	2. I Used to Waste My Time Dreaming of Being Alive (Now I Only Waste It Dreaming of You)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So you got fired?” Aiichirou sighed for what felt like the thousandth time that day.
> 
> “Yes, Momo. For the third time, I got fired. In the middle of my shift.” He rested his arms on the island and placed his head on top of them. Leave it to Momotarou to not grasp the entire concept of being fired.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, am I right? Only took me, what, two months to update this. I know, I know I am a piece of shit that belongs in the trash can with my people. Anyway, chapter two is finally here! Sorry for the delay!
> 
> Also not sure if anyone has noticed this yet, but the title of this story and the title of the chapters are all from Fall Out Boy songs.   
> Story Title: "The Phoenix"  
> Chapter One (that I just changed to keep with the theme): "A Little Less Sixteen Candles, A Little More "Touch Me""  
> Chapter Two: "Of All The Gin Joints In All The World"

Nitori Aiichirou released a small sigh as he boarded the, luckily empty, bus. He quickly located a seat and threw his small lunch bag underneath it. Settling into the hard plastic as best as he could, Ai shoved an ear bud, quite aggressively, into his right ear. It’s twin was soon nestled into his other ear while the headphone jack found refuge into the phone’s port. After a couple seconds of scrolling, Aiichirou’s finger paused over a song. He swiftly tapped the song, pulled the hood of his sweater over his head, and slouched down lower into the hard plastic of the bus seat, letting the smooth tones of the group Style Five wash away his bad work day.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now approaching Station D. I repeat, we are currently approaching Station D.” A robotic, disembodied voice announced over the static filled speaker of the bus.  
The loud voice accompanied with the sudden jerk of the braking bus roused Aiichirou from his music induced nap. He blinked a couple times, trying to force his brain to focus and figure out where he was. After staring blankly for a couple more seconds, he finally remembered that he was at his stop on his daily bus ride home from his job, well ex-job. ‘Guess it’s no longer a daily routine anymore, now is it.’ he thought bitterly. 

When the bus finally came to a full and complete stop, Ai gathered up his small collection of belongings and stood up. Keeping his hood up and his earbuds in, he stood up and made his way off of the bus. The cold wind hit him as he abandoned the warmth of the bus for the brisk conditions outside. Shivering, the boy attempted to burrow himself inside his much too thin sweater and began his uneventful walk home.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
By the time he had reached his front door, Ai’s fifteen minute walk felt like it had drug on for hours. He reached out and grasped the knob. With a quick turn of his wrist, Ai pushed his full weight against the door, only for it to not budge an inch. Bewildered, he tried opening it again, but was met with the same fate. Sighing, he unzipped his lunch box and shoved his hand inside. He blindly rummaged around through the interior, attempting to feel for the smooth metal of his key ring.

“Where is it?” Aiichirou whispered after his third sweep of the bag. Turning around, he leaned his back against the the wooden door and slid down until he was seated on the concrete of the porch. Grabbing the bag by the bottom, he emptied the lunch sack onto the ground in front of him. A dog-eared, worn copy of the first volume of Yowamushi Pedal, a small plastic dish with the remains of a salad within it, two half full water bottles, and an empty pack of bubblemint gum fell out, however, much to Aiichirou’s dismay, a set of house keys did not.

“Crap!” Ai carded his hand through his gray locks and tried to remember where he had left the stupid things. He recalled placing them on the break room table while he on lunch. He also remembered not grabbing them when his boss had called him into her office where she so graciously fired him. Then, after all that when down, he had…

“Shit!” Ai groaned. “Are you kidding me?!” It dawned on him that if he were to go back to his former place of employment, the cute little ducklings on his baby blue lanyard would be smiling up at him from the table where he had recklessly abandoned them when he had stormed out. ‘Great,’ he thought, ‘Just great. Now what am I suppose to do? Just walk in and say “Hey I know I just go fired from here and may or may not have stormed out in a fit of rage, but I forgot my house key and I kind of need that to, you know, get in my house.” Maybe Momo would go and get it for me.’ Aiichirou’s eyes widened in realization. He quickly sprang up and spun around. ‘Momo! He should be home from work now! He can unlock the door!’ Reaching out, he balled up his fist and began banging repeatedly on the door.

“Momo! Momo! Mikoshiba Momotarou, open this door!” Ai ceased his attack on the door and pressed up against it, listening intently for any sign of the redhead. When he heard nothing, his assault on the undeserving piece of wood resumed. 

“Come on, Momo! It’s freezing out here!” Aiichirou punctuated his complaint with a harsh kick that landed, not on the solid metal frame of the door like he was expecting, but instead on something much softer.

“Owww! Mother of fuck!”

Aiichirou’s head jerked up just in time to see Momo’s tuft of orange hair bounce around as he hopped on one foot, the shin of his other leg held tightly in his grasp. 

“What the actual Hell, Ai?! You just kicked me!” Snapping out of his daze, Ai ran into the house and towards his best friend/roommate. 

“Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry, Momo! I didn’t know you were at the door! It’s just, you were so quiet, which is super weird because you’re never quiet, and I didn’t hear you or the door open and oh my gosh! Sorry, sorry! I mean, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Gonna have a hell of a bruise later, but I’ll survive.” Ai released the breath he didn’t know he was holding. He surged forward and grabbed Momo’s hand. He pulled the still limping redhead into the kitchen and practically flung him into one of the two bar stool like chairs that stood in front of a small island.

“Good. Because I have had the worst day of my entire life.”

“Worse than the time when your swimsuit got pulled down during your last high school race and your entire ass was hanging out and you almost gave the crowd a full frontal?”

“Can’t you just let that go?!” Ai moaned.

“Never, Baby, never.” Momo taunted, sticking his tongue out at the older boy.

“Anyway, yes, this day has been far worse than that.” The redhead let out a low whistle.

“Damn. How about we make some microwave s’mores and watch the murder porn channel while you explain everything to me?” 

“Mikoshiba Momotarou, you are the only one who understands me.” Momo flashed Ai a small smile and laughed as he began rummaging around in their cabinets, searching for the ingredients to make their s’mores.

“Same, Ai-chan. Let’s make a pact. If we are both single by time we are thirty, we should marry each other.” Aiichirou answered with a laugh of his own. He watched as Momo broke two graham crackers in half and placed the four sections on a paper plate. He then placed one marshmallow on each piece of cracker. He tucked the plate into the microwave and set it to twenty seconds.

“Don’t you have a fiancee? I don’t think he would be very happy that you’re throwing away a marriage that hasn’t even happened yet so that you could marry your best friend?”

“I said if we were both single, not just you, you loser. I bet I could convince Sousuke to let you in on a poly relationship if you’re still all alone by thirty.” Momo looked over his shoulder and sent Ai a wink. 

“Hey! Who said I’m the one who’s going to be single at thirty? Why can’t it be you?”

“Because, as you said, I’m the one who’s engaged.” 

“Whatever, Brat.” 

The microwave finished with a loud ding. Momotarou quickly pulled the plate out and covered each marshmallow with a piece of chocolate and another section of graham cracker on top of it. He brought it over to the island and placed it down between the both of them with a flourish. Without hesitation, Aiichirou reached out, grabbed one of the gooey treats, and shoved half of it into his mouth.

“So we heading into the living room or are we just gonna forgo the murder network?”

“Stay in here.” He managed to croak out between bits of cracker and marshmallow. He paused for a moment to swallow the snack. “And you better listen closely because I’m only explaining this once.”  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
“So you got fired?” Aiichirou sighed for what felt like the thousandth time that day.

“Yes, Momo. For the third time, I got fired. In the middle of my shift.” He rested his arms on the island and placed his head on top of them. Leave it to Momotarou to not grasp the entire concept of being fired.

“But why? I don’t understand why anyone would just up and fire you. You are literally the nicest, sweetest person I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. Any place should be over the mood to have you as an employee. I just don’t get it.” Momo continued to stare dumbly at Ai as if his eyes could somehow see into the older boy’s head and see the entire conversation he had held with his former employer. 

“Apparently the customers feel uncomfortable,” Aiichirou punctuated the word by forming air quotes with his fingers. “Having a guy as their sales associate at a makeup retailer. It’s just a bunch of sexist stupidity really.” 

“Wait. You? Making people uncomfortable? The only thing you could ever make uncomfortable are straight men’s boners.” The older boy let out a noise that was a cross between a chuckle and a snort. “Classy, Ai-chan, real classy.” Momo squawked out alongside with a snort of his own.

“Well, we have apparently had multiple complaints about my sales tactics. I’m pretty sure it’s one girl that just keeps reporting me over and over. She even told me that my “extensive knowledge of makeup made her uncomfortable.”

“Maybe she’s just pissy because your eyeliner is better than her’s.” Aiichirou let out another unattractive snort.

“Shut up, Momo. This is serious. Quit making me laugh.” Ai finally lifted his head up off his arms and looked at the redhead but quickly looked away. “I just need to find a way to clear my mind. Anything to get my brain out of this funk, you know?” 

“You could always vlog? I mean, doesn’t that always make you feel better?”

“I could but it really can’t be healthy to use vlogging as a coping method.” He turned his head back towards Momo only to see the younger boy staring at him intently. He tried to avoid the other’s eyes but that only last a couple seconds before Momo grabbed Aiichirou’s chin and forced him to look at him.

“It can’t be that bad. Hey, it’s better than doing crystal meth as a coping mechanism! So go talk to your internet people and don’t do crack! I’ll even help you setup your camera!” Momotarou released the boy’s chin and grasp his hand instead. He stood up, pulling Ai up along with him, and pulled him down the hallway towards the other’s bedroom. When they got to the door, Momo pushed Ai in front of him and waited for older boy to open it.

“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever actually been in your room since you decided to redecorate it.” 

“I can set up myself. You really don’t have to help me.” Aiichirou sucked his bottom lip between his teeth and began to chew on it. He really didn’t want Momo to see his newest decorates, mostly because he knew the redhead’s torment would be neverending.

“Oh come on! Just let me in or I’m letting myself in!” As soon as he had said that, Momo forced himself past the smaller boy and pushed the door open. The sight he was met with left him speechless.

“Don’t. Say. Anything. Momotarou.” 

A moment of silence passed before Momo finally regained his voice.

“Is that a fucking Matsuoka Rin body pillow!” Momo ran over to Ai’s bed and picked the pillow up. “Holy shit! It’s double sided! Is this, is this Tachibana Makoto? Oh my god! Your walls are covered! No wonder you won’t let me and Sei in here! I’ve meet teenage girls with more subtle Style 5 obsessions!”

The smaller boy felt his cheeks grow redder and redder and the other boy continued running around his room and shouting out things he finds. He tiptoed into the room, keeping silence as he listened to the other boy’s taunts. 

Momo reached Ai’s desk and looked down at it. The smooth plastic was littered with pictures of the boy band and other promotional items, going along perfectly with the rest of the room. Perched on top on the papers was the older boy’s laptop. Suddenly, Momo stopped and stared Ai down, making the boy feel more and more tense with each second that passed. Finally Aiichirou gave in and whimpered out a fragile, little squeak.

“Oh my god. You read fanfiction, don’t you?!” 

Aiichirou let out an involuntary noise of surprise. His eyebrows shot up into his hairline and his eyes widened. He chewed even harder on his now fully abused lip.

“W-what?! No!”

“Yes, you do! You read fanfiction, that’s more than likely written by a sixteen year girl, about boy band members. Boy band members who are real people! None of this Uta no Prince-Sama anime idol bullshit, but living, breathing dudes! Real people, Aiichirou! How do you not find that awkward?”

“It’s not like I’m going to meet them or anything! Just drop it!” Another bubble of silence surrounded the two for a good five minutes.

“So…who do you ship?”

“Get out, Momotarou!” Ai forcefully grabbed Momo and pushed him out of his room. He slammed the door loudly behind the redhead in an attempt to get his point across and, as in added measure, turned the lock on the door. Sighing, yet again, he wrestled out his camera and began setting up a makeshift tripod. He definitely needed to vlog now.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
Aiichirou was about halfway through telling his miserable tale to his camera when the melodious voice of Matsuoka Rin cut him off. Pausing the recording, Ai quickly grab his phone that was alerting him that he had an incoming phone call. He didn’t recognize the number but tapped the answer key anyway and held the device up to his ear.

“Hello?” 

“Is this Nitori Aiichirou?” A female voice on the other end asked.

“Yes, it is. May I ask who is calling?”

“Sorry,” the voice on the other line sounded flustered. “Where are my manners? My name is Kou. I manage a few boy bands in the area and one of them is in desperate need for a new makeup artist for their next video. I’ve seen a couple of your videos and your contact information was on your page, so I figure I would go ahead and get in touch with you. Is that alright?”

Aiichirou felt like his head was going to spin off his shoulders. A client, an actual client, was calling him to do makeup for a music video! Is this really happening?! He reached out with his free hand and pinched a small patch of exposed skin on his thigh. His smile widened as he felt the sharp flash of pain. This was real! This was really happening!

“Um, Nitori-san?” 

“Oh! Sorry about that! Yes that is perfectly okay! I would love to work with your band!”

“Awesome! You have no idea how much of a life saver you are! I just want to let you know when I say a desperate need, I mean that the video shoot is within the next couple days. Would you be able to meet up with me tomorrow to work out the details and then be free the two days after that for the actual shoot?”

“Of course! I can work with that!”

“Great! How about we meet up at Iwatobi Records at noon tomorrow? I’ll buy us some lunch and we can go over everything. Sound good?”

“That sounds wonderful, Kou-san.”

“Okay! Iwatobi Records at noon! See you there, Nitori-san. Oh, and thank you again!” With that, the woman on the other end of the line disconnected the call. 

Aiichirou sat in silence, trying to slow his heartbeat down to a fairly normal rate. That had really just happened! He had just booked a job as an actual, professional makeup artist to work on a music video set! With a giant smile plastered across his face, Ai turned back towards the camera and unpaused it. 

“Do you guys believe in fate?”


	3. Explanation

Hi everyone! I know it has been absolutely forever since I've updated. This past year has been pretty shitty for me and my writing schedule became very sporadic and then practically none existence due to my severe depression. I am sorry that it seems like I have abandoned this fic. However, I have finally gotten to a better place and am finally enjoying my writing! I'm going to continue working on a series I created in the Haikyuu!! fandom AND I am planning on completely revamp this story!! Chapters 1 and 2 will be basically the same (hopefully a little better) and I am gonna sit my ass down and finish this fic! I am, however, not going to be posting chapter by chapter, but posting it when this entire monster is written!

I have also set up a Twitter that I am going to be using to post updates on this fic, along with updates on other stories I have planned on the side. I will probably also shit post about gay anime boys lol. If you would like to follow me for updates, my username is https://twitter.com/yaoitrashprince Also feel free to talk to me on there because I love making new friends! Oh, and I always follow back ;)

With all my love and my deepest apologies,  
Ash


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